Conventional CNC router machines used to cut and shape a variety of products, often sheets of material consisting of plywood or particleboard, typically include a bed, a worktable mounted on such bed for supporting workpieces to be machined, a gantry mounted on such bed displaceable relative to such worktable along an x-axis, a tool support carriage mounted on such gantry displaceable relative to such worktable along a y-axis, a tool holder mounted on such carriage displaceable relative to such worktable along a z-axis and a control unit for displacing such components along such axes pursuant to a selected operating program. Such machines further typically are provided with stop devices for positioning workpieces on the worktables thereof, means for assuring the proper dispositions of the workpieces relative to the stop devices and means for detachably securing the suitably positioned workpieces on the worktable for commencing the machining operation.
In the effective use of such systems, it is required that workpieces be firmly pressed against the stop defining surfaces of such devices before the conjoining mechanism is activated and the machining operation is commenced. Often, however, operators fail to sufficiently maneuver workpieces against such stop devices resulting in misalignment of the workpieces, offsetting of the machining patterns and scrapping of the workpieces. In seeking to more effectively position such workpieces, electrical sensing devices have been employed. However, such electrical devices have been found not to be entirely effective in signaling the proper positioning of a workpiece, thereby restraining the workpiece and commencing the machining operation.
In view of the foregoing, the principal object of the present invention is to provide an improved means for accurately positioning a workpiece on the worktable of a machine operable to perform a programmed machining function on such workpiece.
Another object of the present invention is to provide system for commencing the execution of a programmed machining routine on a workpiece positioned on a worktable upon suitable positioning and restriction of such workpiece on such table.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a system functional to accurately position and secure a workpiece on the worktable of a machine requiring a minimal effort and discretion of a machine operator.